Tag: Black liberation

This month we’ll be writing to members of the MOVE Organization, a group formed in Philadelphia in the 70s fighting for black liberation, experimenting with communal living, and publicly demonstrating against racism, police brutality, and many other issues. In 1985 the city of Philadelphia bombed the MOVE house, killing 11 people including 5 children and destroying over 65 homes. 9 MOVE members were sentenced to 30-100 in prison following a previous attack on MOVE by the city. Four of them – Charles, Delbert, Janet, and Janine – have birthdays coming up in April. We will be learning more about the MOVE Organization, state repression against them, and writing letters to its still-imprisoned members.

Breaking away from the jail demo tradition, we kicked off the new year with something fresh and exciting. At the stroke of midnight we dropped four banners and let five thousand fliers rain down from two downtown parking garages. United with friends, we reveled in the togetherness we will carry with us into the new year. 2016 was shitty and we expect that 2017 will be as well; however, we recognize the need to continue fighting. With these modest acts, we sharpened coordination practices that we will need in the coming months and years. Each of the banners reflects an element of our revolt we intend to strengthen and spread over the next year – combative memory for our fallen fighters, solidarity with our imprisoned comrades, determination to continue fighting no matter what is thrown at us, and struggle against immediate manifestations of power.

“Vengeance for William Avalon Rodgers & Kuwasi Balagoon. Long Live Anarchy.”As December ends, we also take time to remember the lives of our fallen warriors. William Avalon Rodgers was an Earth liberationist who took his own life on December 21, 2005 while in jail awaiting trial on arson charges. Kuwasi Balagoon was a former Black Panther, fighter in the Black Liberation Army, bisexual, and anarchist who died in prison from medical neglect due to AIDS-related illness on December 13, 1986.

December 2016 marks 11 years since Avalon’s death and 30 since Kuwasi’s. We will not allow those who sacrificed everything for freedom to be forgotten. As we continue our struggles against Power, we keep alive the memory of Kuwasi, Avalon, Alexandros Grigoropoulos, Sebastián Oversluij, Lambros Foundas, Mauricio Morales, Feral Pines, and all of our other comrades who have passed on. Memory, like fire, burns our enemies and keeps us warm.

“What would Marius do? For defenders of the earth and of the wild. For a local history of resistance. supportmariusmason.org”We are consistently inspired by Marius Mason’s spirit and take strength from each of his paintings, poems, and letters. In an attempt to return the favor, we also chose to highlight his acts this New Year’s Eve. For many years, Marius lived and took action in Bloomington and we intend to maintain the passion and fighting spirit that he once embodied here.

“Safe and civil for whom? No complicity with gentrification and social cleansing.”As a quaint college town and liberal bastion in a red state, Bloomington’s iteration of state violence often takes the form of closing off public space to undesirable populations to maintain a sterile, commerce-friendly environment. One of the primary targets of this cleansing is the sizable homeless population. The city has deployed social worker cops, signs discouraging giving money to people on the street, and several new security cameras in popular hangouts like People’s Park. Despite their language of safety and compassion, we know that the city government has no interest in genuine solutions to the problems of poverty, unaffordable housing, and addiction; in reality, it exists to manage and police the conditions that create these problems. We have made a choice to not fall for the soft policing of the non-profits and charities that are in the pocket of the city.

Bloomington People’s History is an ongoing project by local individuals that highlights the legacy of repression and resistance in and around Bloomington, Indiana. All of the posters can be found on to our poster page.

We encourage anyone who is interested to create their own People’s History posters and email them to us. Let’s keep the history of revolt alive!